Simple Things To Spice Up Simple Foods
Don't Freeze The Fat
We all love having drinks with our food, but did you know that what a majority of what we usually drink actually is a large contribution to us gaining fat? When you eat anything that has any fat or oils in it, do NOT drink anything cold for at least 1 hour after finishing your meal.
Here's why. When you drink something cold (especially iced) with your food, the fat and oils do not remain fully liquid and solidify into a gelatin. This gelatin does NOT pass through your system well, sticking to the walls of your intestines. If they stay there too long, your intestines absorb these oils/fats and convert it into actual fat cells that become your "flab". If you keep it going, and on rare occasions, these absorbed monstrosities can become cancerous.
So next time you eat a hearty meal, be sure to only drink warm/hot liquids. If you need more proof, look at all the Asians. They drink hot tea, warm water, heated alcohol, and end their meals with hot soups. That's why no matter how "unhealthy" and fattening the food they eat are, they seem to always stay super thin.
Boiled Chicken With a Twist!
Believe it or not, chicken does have a delicious natural flavour. However, you don't necessarily have to always grill it to get that out. While grilling and frying the chicken can bring out the juices to taste the wonderfulness of the meat, it's rare that one would have it perfect 100% of the time, resulting in times where you just taste the seared skin rather than the taste of the meat. Boiling the chicken is your best bet, and this recipe will turn your ideals upside-down.
First off, this recipe is NOT for WHOLE chickens. We're talking packages of split breasts, drumsticks, thighs or leg quarters. The recipe is for one of the following:
- 4 Drumsticks
- 4 Thighs
- 2 Split Breasts
- 2 Leg Quarters
Aside from one of the above, you'll need all of the following:
- Medium Sized Pot (1 to 1 1/2 gallon)
- Soy Sauce (Kikkoman recommended)
- Teriyaki Sauce (Lee Kum Kee recommended)
- Srirachi Hot Sauce (Bottled regular. Not the jarred extra-spicy.)
Have unfrosted(or even fresh) chicken marinate in soy sauce mixed with 4 oz. of teriyaki sauce for a MINIMUM of 2 hours, no more than 4 hours. Fill pot to 3/4 and set flame to High with lid on. Once the water boils, lift lid and put in chicken (be sure NOT to dump in the liquid contents in the bowl that you marinated with the meat). Place on lid, using chopsticks or anything thin to hold lid about 1/4 of an inch above the top of the pot. This allows the heat to remain trapped, but also air to pass so that the bubbles do not cause the water to overflow and cause a mess. Boil for 45 minutes on High Flame. Turn off fire and use tongs to lift chicken out of water. Make sure it drips out before plating (if you are cooking thighs, they tend to be more oily so it would take a little longer.). Do NOT try to scrape off any of the chicken's natural oils, but let as many that can drip off to do so. Let set for 1 minute before serving.
When eating, feel free to dip in a saucer of Srirachi sauce, or you can add the sauce directly from the bottle. It's fun either way. Do not add too much hot sauce. The Srirachi Hot Sauce adds a little "zing" spice to the chicken, but it also pulls out the chicken's natural taste/flavour. The mix is absolutely mind blowing. Serving is good for 1 to 2.
An Unexpected Underdog
When most people hear the words "condensed milk" the first thing on their minds are "EW!". Don't be fooled by these feelings and words. Condensed milk is one of the best ingredients you can ask for in many things. With the right combinations, it can be the best thing you've ever tasted. BE WARNED: Do not consume condensed milk by itself, it is VERY sweet.
Here's a few basic uses of it that can change your opinion, and possibly your life.
- Waffle or Bread sandwich with peanut butter on one slice, CM on the other.
- Sweetener for Ovaltine and coffee in place of sugar or cream.
- Main ingredient for Hong Kong Style French Toast.
With this, I will include the recipe for HK French Toast since not many people are familiar with it. First of all, you'll need the following ingredients:
- Peanut Butter (chunky recommended)
- Condensed Milk
- White Texas Toast (non-seasoned)
- Eggs
- (Optional) Butter to top the final toast.
Spread peanut butter on one slice and condensed milk on the other. Place the two together, being sure to not let it spill off the sides. Quickly cover with the whisked raw eggs (be sure not to whip), and place on heated hot-plate or skillet. Be sure it cooks evenly on all sides. When fully cooked, serve hot. Goes great with a glass of nice, warm Ovaltine.
Sodium Is NOT Your Best Friend
Everyone loves adding flavour or extra flair to their dishes, but too much is not always good, and this is especially so with salt. Salt, Hoysin Sauce, Soy Sauce, Garlic Salt, etc. These ingredients are not good in bulk, and very bad for you. It's not just from a health standpoint, either. As we all know, too much salty foods can lead to cold sores and canker sores. It also causes dehydration in large amounts. However, if you love food, this will tear your heart away. When you consume too much salts for a long time, it kills your taste buds' ability to register flavours and tastes.
After prolonged consumption of high concentrations of salts, you end up losing your ability to taste the deliciousness of natural flavours from meats and veggies and pretty much everything else. This leads to you not being able to taste anything without heavily drowning everything you eat with more flavouring, sauces and salts. Eventually, by as early as your mid-40's, you won't be able to taste anything anymore.
Make That Toast Amazing
Tired of the same old toaster toast? Well, here's a way to really kick it up a notch. First of all, in lieu of using a traditional toaster, switch to a toaster oven. Once you've switched to this appliance, here's some basic steps to improve on the taste, as well. Prior to toasting your bread, spread your butter or peanut butter evenly on the bread. If you're having jelly/jam with your toast, wait until AFTER you've toasted your bread.
Switching to a toaster oven by itself improves the taste of your toast. When you use a toaster oven, you can fit any sized bread/waffle in it, allowing it to be fully cooked, and not having that nasty, partially cold toast. Also, it cooks completely evenly, not getting varied tastes as you eat the whole thing. Finally, it's easily cleanable. Nothing is nastier on toast is leftovers from a previous one from months prior that you couldn't remove.
When your butter or peanut butter is spread evenly prior to toasting, you're allowing it to essentially become part of what you're eating. This creates a proper mixture of flavour without one overtaking the other. Bread/waffles that mixes its natural taste with your spread properly gives a much higher magnitude of flavour.